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Saturday, July 31, 2010

As you might imagine, the IE isn't exactly rocking the food variety. We do have near every chain restaurant imaginable west of the Mississippi, but outside that we offer very little. Angel and I have been chowing down at Arby's for the last month because after I introduced Angel on a warm summer day to the delectable curly fries and roast beef sandwich, she was hooked.

However, today we made the hour drive to Venice to partake in the first annual Westside Food fest.

I heard about the event on the morning news and was immediately excited because I could fulfill my food truck dreams. I won't drive out to LA just for a food truck I haven't tried, so today I could sample several and make important decisions on which to pursue on a future date. Because Angel and I are planners, we decided beforehand which trucks were especially intriguing and what on the menu we should split before we left.

To give you a picture of the event, imagine 14 of LAs best gourmet food trucks in one location. And if you still can't picture it, feast your eyes on these pictures from the day.

Ahn-Joo Citrus Chicken skewers and Spicy chilled buckwheatthe skewers took a bit long to make, but they and the noodles were wonderful.

Vizzi Heirloom Tomato Piadinadelicious, and when the food was taking a little long to make (but not even long compared to Ahn-Joo) they gave Angel and I free cookies. Lovely customer service :)

FishlipsVery good for sushi on the go, the fastest service we received besides the frozen lemonade. I love sushi, all kinds, and especially crunchy rolls. The roll combo was perfect for Angel and I since we were trying to eat a little bit from each truck, but also wanted to make sure we had a variety.

The Munchie Machine The Green Bird- turkey, pesto, and Roma tomatoes with Swiss cheese on ciabatta bread.The most fun truck, the workers give free high-5s and offer free refills, all you have to do is ask. Besides the service, the food was exceptional as well. I was afraid it would be too bland, but it definitely was not. I LOVE sandwiches so much!

Komodo Truffle friesAngel and I stood there at our last truck wondering, what should we get? It all looks so delicious, so how does one choose? At first I saw garlic fries and thought, "man, I haven't had garlic fries in forever! let's get those" then to my surprise I see truffle fries and think "well, fries can't get any more gourmet than that!" Thus, decision made. I do not regret that decision in any way.

So, day complete. Well, not really.Now day complete.

Could you imagine a better way to spend the day? No? Well, how about adding The Princess Bride to the mix. That's right, August 21, the outdoor cinema food fest will be an evening of The Princess Bride and food trucks! SO EXCITING!!!!!!!!

Sunday, July 18, 2010

I know I talk a lot about TV and movies and stuff unrelated to food on this blog, but I hope you can enjoy all that I explore in the world, even if most of it is not food related.

So, I previously mentioned that Eureka is one of my favorite SyFy shows and I stand by that. The new season started a week ago and I'm hooked. Here is the thing about this show that this season might drive me crazy while simultaneously sucking me in even deeper: nothing on this show is ever finished.

The story lines are always changing and because it is in the science fiction genre, time travel and space time continuum is not out of the question. So, all this great stuff happens in the first 10 minutes of the new season and I'm thinking: "woohoo!" and then five of the main characters get pulled back in time. When they finally realize what has happened they figure out a way to go back but not without some issues. In their time they realize that the consequences of their travel are inconsequential in the grand scheme, but life altering in their own lives. And now they might be stuck in the alternate timeline forever! NOOOOO!!!!!!

On the one hand, I hate this because this is not the first time this show has pulled tricks like this. In the first season there is some time travel and as a result we see some relationships that had developed disappear. I dislike how it toys with my emotions. On the otherhand, I can appreciate how the constant changes and unpredictablitly of the show keeps me on my toes. It also shows some originality that is absent in many shows.

However, my love for the show is great so despite how it messes with me emotionally, I shall continue to watch and you all should consider doing the same.

Monday, July 12, 2010

My friend, Katie the vegan, is an amazing cupcake creator.She makes the most amazing looking and tasting vegan cupcakes, and I can truly say they are the best I eva had. Behold the glory.FYI, those fries are pound cake artisitically designed to resemble fries. We were all fooled! But, pleasantly surprised when we took a bite. I believe the design inspirations came from Hello, Cupcake and What's New, Cupcake.

Thursday, July 1, 2010

Today I went to Raleigh Studios on Melrose for a Community Screening and Promo Shoot and it was amazing. I previously mentioned my love for this show and if you are not yet watching it, you are missing out on something special.

The day started off standing in a line outside for what seemed like forever but in retrospect was only 2 hours (still a lot, but actually really short for these types of events). On the bright side of waiting in line, the line was at the studio lot entrance so we could see everyone who entered and exited the lot including Kevin Bacon (The Closer is filmed at Raleigh) and someone who I swear looked like Desmond Harrington. I can't confirm the Desmond siting, but if not then this person could totally be his stand-in.

So after the wait they finally shuffled us (the 80 or so fans) into a screening room where Joel Mchale and Ken Jeong were already hanging out. The day proceeded to be a dream. Joel Mchale, so close, I could reach out and touch him. I didn't, because that would be creepy, but I could have. I was seated in the third row almost smack dab in the middle so watch out for me next Thursday when the clips air during the Community Fanfest Night. In the above photo (taken by Joel Mchale and posted on his twitter) you can't see me because it only catches the first two rows, but you can see my moms bright blue shirt in the back.

The greatest moment of the day, for me, was when Ken Jeong hilariously tried to make fun of people based on where they were from. He asked the audience, I raised my hand, he called on me, and I said "Cucamonga" and happiness followed. He is SOOO hilarious, I can't even describe it. He and Joel were both always on, throwing out jokes and making fun of each other and people in the audience. It felt like hanging out at a party with a bunch of friends. After Ken fumbles (his jokes regarding "where are you from?" involved him akwardly and uncomfortably stumbling through none funny comebacks that are made hilarious by him because he is really good and feigning bad) Joel looked at me and apologized for Ken's comments (jokingly) and after that I felt great. The remainder of the day Ken referenced audience members by their locale (Walnut, Rancho-me :), and Mesa).

The pure ecstasy of being so close to these people wasn't enough, the day only got better. We filmed a number of wrap-arounds for next week and after the finished shot for each scene, Joel and Ken always asked for one more. During that last shot the scene would go on for a long time as the two would improvise and the audience went along with it like it was scripted and we knew exactly what we were doing. At one point they had all of us all on our feet filing out to the surprise of the crew and Joel and Ken.

It was so much fun. I am sad none of my friends could join me, this whole year has been sprinkled with so many moments of me asking "did that really just happen?" It is a fantabulous life I am living.